With valuations rising and new investors entering the market, sports acquisitions demand the integrated balance‑sheet strength and global reach of a unified cross-bank approach.
Deutsche Bank Private Bank has long supported clients in financing illiquid assets, such as private equity, art and – increasingly over the last decade – sports teams. As valuations within sport have increased, so too has the need for banking teams able to move quickly to support bids across jurisdictions.
“It’s our ability to understand size, speed and complexity that enables us to support team acquisitions,” states Arjun Nagarkatti, Head of Private Bank – US & Europe International at Deutsche Bank.
Two recent appointments within the Lending Unit will support the growth of sports financing: Sowmya Kotha in London and Joshua Frank in New York, expanding on their existing roles in the bank. “Sports financing not only supports clients with acquisitions and refinancings but also enables them to pursue strategic goals through enhanced liquidity,” says Kotha.
How can a bank act as a sports financing partner?
Such clients often want a bank that acts as a strategic partner. “That means we need to bring the entire global Hausbank to bear on the partnership,” says Nagarkatti. “It’s not just about financing. It’s also about helping clients navigate risks, evaluate pros and cons, as well as find fair value.”
The Private Bank focuses on client‑level acquisitions, while the Investment Bank typically provides team‑level financing against transfer‑fee receivables, TV‑rights income, sponsorship‑contract revenues and the like.
Where a client-level financing request sits depends on recourse: when clients prefer not to provide personal or family office guarantees, and the team is the only collateral, requests can be referred from the Private Bank to the Investment Bank.
This approach brings together balance‑sheet insight and specialist asset‑level expertise, giving clients a coherent view of valuation, risk and financing.
A distinct approach to sports financing
Deutsche Bank’s ability to deliver bespoke sports financing stems from the Private Bank’s capacity to finance clients using the strength of their entire balance sheet. “We can use a combination of assets to identify solutions,” says Kotha. “If a client cannot take financing against a sports team, we can finance other assets to achieve the end goal.”
Sports financing not only supports clients with acquisitions and refinancings but also enables them to pursue strategic goals through enhanced liquidity.
Sowmya Kotha
Head of Strategic Lending, Deutsche Bank Private Bank
Kotha highlights that, in some situations when a client cannot pledge the underlying asset while in the bidding stage, the bank may propose a financing solution secured against a client’s other uncorrelated assets such as listed shares, private company interests, commercial real estate or marketable securities.
Deep relationships enable creativity in finding solutions. “As the relationship evolves and the client is known throughout the institution, our ability to be creative provides a lot of comfort,” says Frank.
For a client in the US acquiring a football team, the bank structured a syndicated facility secured against a diversified pool of private company interests and other investments. Another US-based client was supported with streamlined holding company‑level financing for a majority acquisition, with work ongoing to evaluate club‑level and stadium financing within the same framework.
Speed can also be decisive: in 2025, the bank prepared a fully executable structure for a proposed minority stake in a US basketball franchise within four to six weeks.
Private capital and an expanding buyer universe
Both private equity and private credit now play a major role in sports investing, supported by loosened ownership rules across major US leagues[1].
“Institutional capital is increasingly entering sports team ownership,” says Kotha. “In our opinion, PE involvement can help establish credible valuations and expands the buyer universe, which supports risk approvals and underwriting.”
Private credit is “both a benefit and a competitor”, adds Nagarkatti. “It brings a significant new source of capital, increasing liquidity and making these deals easier to finance. But it can also do things outside a bank’s risk appetite in terms of size and concentration.”
Being a bank of choice for sports investors
Deutsche Bank will host its inaugural Sports Conference in London in September. For Nagarkatti, the ambition is clear: “Whether your interest is a cricket team in India, a European soccer team, an NBA team in California or a SailGP team in Germany, we want to be the bank of choice for globally minded sports investors.”
